True Purpose

c h a p t e r 6

Zaynab was woken up by someone shaking her shoulders vigorously and quite roughly.

"Zaynab! Get up, right now!" She heard aunt say. Her eyes were still closed, but as soon as she heard Samina's voice, they shot open.

"Y-yes, Auntie," Zaynab replied and got up, and out of her bed.

"Are you aware of what is going to be held today?" Samina asked.

"Y-yes, Auntie," Zaynab answered.

"Good. Now, you're going to go and get ready. The wedding is going to be in the afternoon," Samina instructed and left the room, leaving her alone in her room.

Two weeks had passed unbelievably quickly, much to Zaynab's dismay. It was a Saturday and Zaynab's wedding was to be held today. Zaynab was exhausted because she had stayed at university till really late last night, dreading what was to come the next day.

But alas, the next day did come and today was Zaynab's wedding. But the funny thing was that not only did Zaynab not know what this guy looked like or how he was as a person, but she also had no idea what his name was! She was too scared to ask her aunt, so she just decided to pretend like she doesn't even care.

As a teenager, Zaynab had read her fair share of love stories secretly. But she had never dared to hope that some day, her own 'Prince Charming' would come and sweep her off her feet. After everything that Zaynab had been through, her faith in humanity was lost, and all the hopes she had for whatever reasons had always come crashing down in some way or another. So she never allowed herself to daydream about any guy being her knight in shining armour. She always knew that she was meant to be miserable and the only sole hope she had was that someday, she wanted to become a doctor so that she could stand on her own feet, and be completely independent.

But from what Zaynab had read, she knew that her situation regarding her marriage and everything was far from normal. Which girl would have no idea who her husband was going to be to the point that it was her wedding day but she didn't even know her would-be husband's name? Zaynab really didn't know if anyone else had ever been in a situation similar to hers.

Zaynab's aunt had told her to get ready. Zaynab had never applied make-up before in her life, and neither had she ever dressed up. So how was she going to get ready?

Grabbing her bathrobe, Zaynab left her room and entered the common bathroom and took a long shower, and even though the water was freezing cold, Zaynab found it relaxing. After all, Zaynab was used to taking these freezing showers. A loud knock on the door made her turn the tap closed.

"Zaynab! You'll finish the water! Get out of the shower!" She heard Sahir shout.

Zaynab wondered why he couldn't give her a break, at least for today! She was leaving today, for crying out loud! Why couldn't he just let her be for once in his life? Taking her bathrobe from the door hook, she wrapped it around herself and left the bathroom, hoping that Sahir would not be lurking outside the bathroom, and to her relief, he was gone.

Zaynab walked inside her room and locked the door. Samina had left a heavy wedding gown which apparently had a headscarf and a veil on Zaynab's bed. When Zaynab saw the headscarf, she wondered what it was for. Zaynab had seen several ladies with their heads covered, and from what Zaynab remembered about her own mother, she also used to wear the headscarf. But Samina never wore it, and she didn't approve of it, while Zaynab herself didn't know the purpose of the headscarf. Zaynab figured that Samina's colleague - or better still, Zaynab's mother-in-law to be - is the one who sent the wedding attire for Zaynab.

Zaynab got out of her bathrobe and slid into the heavy gown, albeit with a little struggle. But to her relief, it fit her quite well. Not knowing how to fasten the headscarf or the veil, she decided to try doing her makeup first. Zaynab didn't really own any makeup, but her aunt had left a pouch containing some used makeup on Zaynab's tiny dresser.